Funny how Goddard continues to issue booklet after booklet about consumer fraud amidst the billion dollar state budget deficit and the Republic continues to look the other way, even promoting Goddard’s constant self-promotion using consumer fraud (doesn’t that seem a bit weird?). That’s the problem when you have a Democrat in an office that is not supposed to be about spending, like law enforcement. They will always find ways to spend extra money. The Republic chooses to ignore his wasteful spending, because they would like Goddard to become Governor in 2010.

We’ve decided to reproduce the article below, an interview with Goddard on aztalk Live Talk:

1. What are some of the ways the Attorney General’s Office is battling consumer fraud through education?

Check out all the guides, booklets, pamphlets and videos I have published to educate the public. You’ll see that I have produced more than any law enforcement official in the country. And I’ve only been in office since 2003. It’s a pretty impressively long list. My name recognition in Arizona is finally as high as Sheriff Arpaio’s.

2. How many cases of consumer fraud occur in Arizona? How many cases result in arrests and convictions?

I’m not sure because not all of them are prosecuted by my office. Depending on the type of fraud, they may be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the city prosecutors, or the county prosecutors. If you add all those up, the amount my office prosecutes probably looks minuscule. We mostly only prosecute white collar consumer fraud, a small fraction of fraud cases.

3. Moving to other topics, what’s the Attorney General Office’s role, if any, in the employer-sanctions law?

Hopefully none. As a strong Democrat, I have always believed that illegal immigration should be handled by the federal government, not state and local governments. The one time I attempted to get involved and seize the money from wire transfers going to Mexico, the court struck it down as unconstitutional. I’ve learned my lesson. I prefer to follow the lead of Governor Napolitano and avoid prosecuting illegal immigration as much as possible. I’ll sort of talk tough, but do as little as possible – that’s the way to get elected as a Democrat in this state.

4. Are things getting better or worse in terms of crime and crime fighting in Arizona?

A couple of local police agencies have recently released figures showing that crime is finally starting to decrease in Arizona. However, that’s probably because local law enforcement has started arresting and deporting illegal immigrants, which includes a lot of criminals. I don’t think you can fairly say that crime is going down because of that. If you take the illegal immigrant factor out, maybe crime levels are really the same. These law enforcement agencies like to take credit for reducing crime by deporting illegal immigrants, but that’s not really reducing crime.

5. Jerry Nasenbeny of Sun City West asks: I live in a senior community. I understand that the Registrar of Contractors may be of help resolving a dispute between a contractor and a homeowner, but after reading your (Viewpoints) article in the paper, am I to understand that your office will also step in if the dispute is not resolved? I’m in a situation where I feel the contractor is stalling, and I’m close to seeking help. Which route should I go?

Generally I like to refer most complaints to other offices if possible, because that saves our office money, and honestly, since I’ve spent so much money publicizing myself lately (2 more guides within the last month or so), and the state is in the middle of a billion dollar budget deficit, we’re sort of short on resources right now. So for this complaint, I’m going to refer you to the state Registrar of Contractors. Good luck. If that doesn’t work, try the Better Business Bureau, they’re really nice folks. Tell them I sent ya.